Head-To-Head Analysis: Kinetik (NYSE:KNTK) and ProFrac (NASDAQ:ACDC)

ProFrac (NASDAQ:ACDC) and Kinetik (NYSE:KNTK) are both energy companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, dividends, profitability, earnings, analyst recommendations, valuation and institutional ownership.

Volatility and Risk

ProFrac has a beta of 1.66, indicating that its share price is 66% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Kinetik has a beta of 3.07, indicating that its share price is 207% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares ProFrac and Kinetik”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
ProFrac	$2.19 billion	0.32	-$215.10 million	($2.05)	-1.86
Kinetik	$1.48 billion	3.77	$244.23 million	$0.42	82.48

Kinetik has lower revenue, but higher earnings than ProFrac. ProFrac is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Kinetik, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares ProFrac and Kinetik’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
ProFrac	-16.86%	-32.01%	-11.17%
Kinetik	6.70%	-5.74%	1.81%

Insider & Institutional Ownership

12.8% of ProFrac shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 21.1% of Kinetik shares are held by institutional investors. 2.6% of ProFrac shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 3.8% of Kinetik shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for ProFrac and Kinetik, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
ProFrac	5	2	0	0	1.29
Kinetik	0	5	7	0	2.58

ProFrac presently has a consensus price target of $5.80, suggesting a potential upside of 51.83%. Kinetik has a consensus price target of $50.30, suggesting a potential upside of 45.21%. Given ProFrac’s higher possible upside, equities analysts plainly believe ProFrac is more favorable than Kinetik.

Summary

Kinetik beats ProFrac on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About ProFrac

ProFrac Holding Corp. operates as a technology-focused energy services holding company in the United States. It operates through three segments: Stimulation Services, Manufacturing, and Proppant Production. The company offers hydraulic fracturing, well stimulation, in-basin frac sand, and other completion services and complementary products and services to upstream oil and natural gas companies engaged in the exploration and production of unconventional oil and natural gas resources. It also manufactures and sells high horsepower pumps, valves, piping, swivels, large-bore manifold systems, and fluid ends. ProFrac Holding Corp. was founded in 2016 and is headquartered in Willow Park, Texas.

About Kinetik

Kinetik Holdings Inc. operates as a midstream company in the Texas Delaware Basin. It provides gathering, transportation, compression, processing, and treating services for companies that produce natural gas, natural gas liquids, crude oil, and water. The company is headquartered in Midland, Texas.